I'm really good at this.

Three days later, in a private room of a hot pot restaurant in Sichuan.

"The hot pot here is absolutely amazing, you have to try it. Come on, let's all stay home and not be shy."

Sun Zheng began to greet them.

Zhang Hong raised his glass to a Sprite: "I've long heard that Sichuan hot pot is good for you, and there are quite a few beautiful girls here. It seems that's true. Come on, let me toast you both."

Liu Yishou and Sun Zheng exchanged a smile, picked up their Coke and Fanta respectively, and then the three of them clinked glasses.

After downing a glass of cola, Zhang Hong grimaced and burped, then picked up his chopsticks and started putting meat into the hot pot while asking, "Director Liu, Director Sun, what can I do for you?"

Sun Zheng laughed: "Can't I come to you for no reason?"

"No way." Zhang Hong smiled as well. "It's just that you two are both very busy people. You definitely wouldn't contact me if there wasn't something wrong. You probably have something to do."

"I do have something to do, but let's not talk about it now." Liu Yishou picked up a piece of beef tripe with his chopsticks and put it into the pot to simmer while asking, "Xiao Hong, I heard you've been filming corporate promotional videos lately? Why did you decide to go back to filming that stuff when you could be filming TV dramas?"

After all, he's a big director, and he looks down on people who make pornographic films.

"That's not a gay porn film, well... it's hard to say." Zhang Hong rubbed his hair, clicked his tongue, "How should I put it... maybe it's a gay porn film like a TV series? Or a TV series like a gay porn film?"

It's hard to say.

"But no matter what, I helped someone else fulfill their obsession, and I feel pretty good about that."

Zhang Hong quite liked this feeling.

To be honest, he's not a professional, and he's not making movies.

So he has absolutely no interest in things like viewership ratings, website clicks, or sales figures.

At first, he was just forced into it, but later his goal was to make money.

As for now...

Although he felt satisfied at the time, the thought of the ten million he had rejected made him feel increasingly upset, and he even wished he could travel back in time and slap himself.

You damn pretentious artsy type! Are you even that kind of person?

Fortunately, there was still a five million yuan safety net (eight hundred thousand yuan was for studio operating expenses), otherwise he would have been kicking himself.

"Tsk, I knew young people these days are too impetuous." Liu Yishou picked up a piece of crispy tripe with his chopsticks, but the more he thought about it, the angrier he got. He put down his chopsticks and began to lecture Zhang Hong, "Xiao Hong, you should be pursuing art! If you make a good TV series, the money will naturally come! Why lower yourself to take on some low-budget corporate films?"

The phrase "disappointed that he is not living up to his potential" perfectly expresses his current feelings.

He became even more displeased after witnessing Zhang Hong's talent.

Zhang Hong grinned: "Director Liu, mine could actually be considered a TV series, right? The production cost was nearly a billion!"

Liu Yishou took the cigarette Sun Zheng offered, then turned around upon hearing this: "Stop talking nonsense! What kind of adult film costs a billion? Even making a movie wouldn't cost that much! My film 'Bloody Youth' only cost a little over a hundred million! That was a rare big investment in recent years!"

It was only because Liu Yishou truly regarded Zhang Hong as his own nephew that he was able to completely expose his foul mouth.

Even when he was criticizing people on set in the past, he usually wouldn't use such explicit profanity.

"Calm down, have a smoke first." The kind-hearted Sun Zheng nudged Liu Yishou's hand and then lit a cigarette for him.

He then lit one for himself and handed one to Zhang Hong before asking, "Xiao Hong, there's no need for this kind of joke. Old Liu only said that because he cares about you. He rarely does this outside of family."

Talented young people are often impetuous, and he was afraid that Zhang Hong would get angry and leave.

And let him not get too cocky—a billion-dollar investment in a gay porn film? Who would believe such nonsense?

If you're going to lie, at least make it believable.

This obviously false lie is an insult to the intelligence of the two old men.

Zhang Hong isn't a giant baby; of course he knows that both directors meant well.

But what he said was true!

Zhang Hong took a drag of his cigarette, the smoke drifting out with a bitter smile: "What I said is true. I really invested a billion yuan, and then I only had a little over five million yuan left. And that doesn't even include publicity."

Liu Yishou raised his eyebrows, about to start cursing, but he also heeded Sun Zheng's advice. He took a deep breath to calm himself down, then flicked his cigarette ash and frowned, saying, "Xiao Hong, stop talking nonsense. I won't say anything to you."

He took a deep drag on his cigarette, rubbed the butt hard in the ashtray, and said, "Are you short of money right now? I have a few million in working capital here. You can take it and use it; consider it a loan."

Young people are easily embarrassed and have a strong sense of self-esteem, which is why he said it was borrowed.

Of course, he never intended to get it back.

Sun Zheng also said, "I made quite a bit of money investing in your TV series before. If you need money, I happen to have some money that I haven't invested yet, so I can give it to you first, no problem."

Zhang Hong raised his hand and rubbed it under his nose.

He felt a burning sensation in his eyes, perhaps because of the heat from the hot pot in the private room.

However, there's really no need to give money.

"I'm really not short of money. I made over five million from the 'Mobile Suit Gundam' movie alone. Uncle Sun, Uncle Liu, I'm not lying to you. By the way, Mobile Suit Gundam is the movie I took on. That TV series had a total of twenty-five episodes, how could it be a 'GG' movie?"

He changed how he addressed the two directors.

Upon hearing that it was a 25-episode TV series, Liu Yishou and his companion felt somewhat relieved.

However, this has created new problems.

Liu Yishou picked up his chopsticks again, added some shrimp paste to the hot pot, and asked as he did so, "What about the publicity? Is this going to be a web series or are we trying to get it broadcast on TV? I know some people here who can help you make some connections."

He didn't ask about the film's cost.

In his view, how could a billion be possible?

Capital is profit-driven. If you invest 1 billion, you'll need to earn 10 billion to make it back.

Moreover, if such a large investment were to be made, it seems unlikely that a young person like Zhang Hong would be suitable for the time being.

Moreover, with large investments, publicity and promotion would have followed long ago, unlike now where no one knows anything.

"Don't worry about that, they'll handle it." Zhang Hong swished a piece of mutton into his mouth, then opened his mouth and breathed out hot air. "That's a project from China Heavy Industries, and the boss is taking it very seriously. He said it will be shown on CCTV, so you two can rest assured."

After finishing the mutton, Zhang Hong looked up and saw that the two still didn't quite believe him. He said helplessly, "No, I'll let you know when the results are out. You can go and see for yourselves then."

Since he said so, Liu Yishou and the other man decided to believe him for the time being.

Liu Yishou nodded: "Alright, then you must let us know when there are results, so that the two of us old folks can help you check it out."

"That would be great, but please don't scold me too harshly later, I'm easily offended." Zhang Hong chuckled before asking, "So, what do you two want from me? You can't have just called me all the way to Sichuan to get a lecture, can you?"

Liu Yishou lit another cigarette, then gestured with his chin to signal Sun Zheng to speak.

Sun Zheng put down his chopsticks, took out a tissue to wipe his mouth, then rested his arm on the table and leaned forward slightly: "It's like this, recently someone approached us, saying they want to invest in making a film about the 'March War'. We both have scripts in hand and are planning to raise funds to make it, so we can't be apart. We just wanted to ask if you're interested."

"A war movie, huh? That must have a huge budget..." Zhang Hong chuckled. "Since you two have extended this invitation, it would be disrespectful of you to say I wasn't interested. But how exactly do you make a war movie? Does the other party have a large budget?"

Having had one successful experience, he wanted to take it a step further.

Make more money!

Human desires can expand.

Now that we've made money on the house, the next step is naturally to start making money on the car.

There might be additional costs for dowry, wedding expenses, renovations, and even baby formula for raising children a few years from now.

It's good to be prepared for a rainy day; having money on hand can keep you from feeling anxious.

"The investment isn't actually that big; they just want to film a soldier's glorious story." Sun Zheng shook his head. "Well, I can't really say. Anyway, if you're interested, we can go and pay them a visit together."

The soldier's glorious experiences?

Zhang Hong was amused.

Then I might as well film Yan Shuangying, that would be absolutely glorious!

He was indeed interested—mainly because of the money.

At worst, we can just make it into a ridiculous war drama; satisfying the investors is the top priority anyway.

Raising his glass, Zhang Hong smiled and said, "No problem. When are we going? I need to bring Lin Muqing with me; she's the head housekeeper of my studio now."

Liu Yishou stubbed out his cigarette and wiped his mouth: "Then let's call her over as soon as possible. Once she's here, we'll set off."

............

"How did that matter go?"

"Brother Hao, you can trust me to handle things! I've already inquired. Xiao Hong is making a sci-fi movie about a space war with all robots. As for China Heavy Industries, you know, it's probably just a promotional video or something. At least that's what my Lin Chuan told me, and that kid wouldn't lie to me."

"Okay, thanks bro."

In his 500-square-meter office, Zhang Hao let out a long sigh after hanging up the phone.

This time, the company that hired his son to make the film was China Heavy Industry, so he couldn't interfere.

As a friend who had struggled together in the past, he also knew about Lao Liang's family situation.

Therefore, he also knew what Grandpa Liang wanted.

To be honest, he was happy about the film, so he didn't want to interfere.

But next time...

He quickly dialed another number.

"How did things go?"

"Boss, I've already invested in Sun Zheng and Liu Yishou. They're both using our investment to make a new film and don't have time to make that one. So they really did go to see the young master. Also, the invitations for those awards have been sent out."

"Okay! Keep an eye on it! Contact me anytime!"

"Okay, boss."

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Hao's lips curled into a wild smile: "Son, son, I'd like to know what kind of war film you can make with only a million in investment."

PS: Daily life 1/2

Although the blind date failed, it was still quite interesting. After I finish posting Chapter Two, I'll write a short essay to give everyone a laugh.

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